Staff Heroes Blog

Working in hospitality can be fast-paced, relentless, and endlessly rewarding. We take a look at 4 best things the industry has to offer its London-based workforce this Autumn season

London in Autumn

We’ve officially broken up with summer after dragging out the last dark days of our fling. But don’t fret, Autumn has arrived in style, and with it there is bountiful opportunity to enjoy this great city. Of course, working in hospitality in London can be taxing, but London can be incredibly giving throughout October.

In particular, the green – browny yellow – spaces around the city are glorious this time of year. So, whether it’s Hyde Park, Hampstead Heath or Hackney Marshes, dig out your puffa and scarf, take a tour, and embrace mother nature at her finest.

Last week there were four, yes four, London bars featuring in the World’s 50 Best Bars. And with the London Restaurant Festival running through the entirety of October, there is no shortage of places to eat or drink this month.

So, you see, the drop in temperature shouldn’t be met with scorn. There are plenty of reasons to be happy about cooler days and evenings: allergy season is over, fewer tourists, more mulled cider, and the scorching heat on the Central Line – thing of the past (and distant future). Anyway, you get the drift. Autumn = good.

The people

Somehow, Londoners seem to have gained a reputation for being rude. In my opinion, this is an unfair charge, especially when dealing with people that work in hospitality. It is literally our job to be nice to people, which makes meeting new people and building social networks a daily joy.

With people working in Restaurants, hotels, bars, and cafés a fairly outgoing bunch, hospitality work lends itself very well to an active social life. Sure, the demands of your employer can be high but the rewards are great. While “work hard, play hard” might be cliché, it’s very apt for many working in the hospitality sector.

If your housemates are too tired for Friday night drinks, you can bet your bottom dollar you can find a few colleagues to enjoy a post-work spritzer with. As many people have friendships from previous jobs, expect the opportunity to meet all sorts of new people through your work colleagues, the weird and the wonderful. Hospitality work attracts great personalities.

Being a Londoner

Identifying as a Londoner happens over time for some and immediately for others. Once you’re there, though, it’s fantastic.

Knowing to avoid Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus are paramount to being a Londoner. As is nudging people that don’t stand far enough to the right on escalators, and if you’re ever able to correct another so-called “Londoner” on the best underground line to take to their location, you’ll never forget that level of elation.

Best of all, it means you know all the best places to go this Autumn season. Industry knowledge that Breddos Taqueria is opening a new location in Soho this month, Trafalgar Street St. James hotel has reopened its doors, and London officially boasts four of the world’s top ten bars (am I repeating myself?) is key to staying ahead of the curve in your social circles. Oh the joys.

Fantastic work locations

London’s hospitality scene boasts some of the most iconic venues in the world. Imagine walking through Mayfair on a blustery autumnal day as you head to work at the Dorchester, or cycling around St. James’s Park before your shift at The Ritz – these are treasures that you’ll never bore of. For much of London’s hospitality staff that’s a perk of the job.

Equally, the thought of navigating the Alleyways of Spitalfields or the backstreets of Brixton on a night after working at the latest pop-up bar, restaurant, or boutique hotel reassures you that what you’re doing is awesome.

With the emergence of the gig-economy, companies such as Staff Heroes enable you to work at different locations at your convenience. So, for example, you could be busing tables at The Dorchester on Wednesday night, drawing a rosetta on Joe Smith’s flat white on Thursday morning, and shaking cocktails at one of London’s four bar’s that made the world top 10 list (have I mentioned that already?) on Friday night. Don’t believe me? Take a look current available jobs here